Much as I would like to name a "best of trip," that is impossible. We enjoyed so much fabulous food from so many wonderful places. But two places stood out just a bit above the rest. However, one can't really be ranked above the other. So, we'll explore the other in the next post.
The place to which we keep bringing our friends is Christiano's Italian Restaurant in Santa Rosa Beach. Chef/Owner Chris Chirum and his wife Rene offer genuine hospitality, killer fish and seafood, red sauce Italian, pizza, and house made desserts. The food and atmosphere are so welcoming, we forgive Chef for being a Steeler's fan!
The first basket of this luscious house-made focaccia bread is complimentary, and is accompanied by a savory dipping oil. You don't want to fill up on bread when there is so much goodness to come, do you?
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| Bob's: Trout Meunière: Pan-sautéed Trout in a classic brown butter sauce with lemon and capers, with fresh asparagus and pasta marinara. |
We've had several different fishes prepared Meuniere style at Christiano's and they are always delicious. But my first entree this season hit the motherload.
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| Italian Whole Snapper al Forno |
Locally caught whole Red Snapper baked with fresh herbs, lemon & garlic, encrusted with bread crumbs & Pecorino Romano Cheese was bone-licking good! The side of pasta with marinara went almost untouched (though it made a tasty left over the next day) but not one morsel of that snapper remained!
On our second visit, we were joined by a Cleveland area couple whose acquaintance we had just made, via a Cleveland food group on Facebook. They are regulars to the Destin area in winter, but had never before enjoyed Chef Chris's hospitality. They left happy, sated, and impressed.
Christiano's is one of the few restaurants where I will eat the shrimp (which are generally sourced from Harbor Docks Wholesale Seafood Market together with much of the fin fish). So Bob and I began with an appetizer of Bad-a-Bing Shrimp.
Local shrimp are simmered in a Moscato wine garlic butter sauce with sun-dried tomatoes & scallions. Pristine and succulent.
This time, I had the Meunière, prepared with Louisiana Redfish. It was splendid.
Bob, and one of our dining companions, opted for the classic Fettuccine Alfredo and they were both delighted with it.
Our remaining dining companion chose the Pork Osso Buco, which was quite spectacular. It looked like the ones depicted in the video on Christiano's Facebook page, and our friend enjoyed every drop! Christiano's Pork Shank Food Porn.
For our third and final visit, we brought our dear friends Phil and Virginia for their first meal on their brief visit with us. I had so enjoyed my taste of Bob's Alfredo the last time, that I went for the Alfredo with Shrimp; it proved an excellent choice.
Bob decided to landlubber with the Veal Marsala.
Veal Scaloppine was sautéed with mushrooms, onion & garlic in a dry Marsala sauce and served with pasta marinara. It melted in the mouth.
Phil and Virginia love sweets, and persuaded us to join them in dessert. This was probably the only dessert we ordered on the entire trip, but oh, my it was worth the splurge!
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| House-made Key Lime Pie |
The pie was perfect, from the tender flaky crust through the creamy filling and up to the top of the house-whipped cream. I do recommend that you sample one of Chef Chris's desserts should you dine at Christiano's!
If you want to try the whole fish, it is best to call and reserve an order, because they don't keep a lot of it on hand (especially in winter) so as to only serve the freshest fish. Prices for fish are commensurate with the neighborhood, but the prices overall are extremely reasonable and the service is always stellar. As you can see, the portions are substantial. Christiano's also had some nice value priced wines by the glass, as well as more high end selections. I don't know if they still have live entertainment in the lounge, but when offered, we enjoyed it. We always have fun playing with the food at Christiano's!
Christiano's Italian Restaurant
4942 U.S. 98 Santa Rosa Beach, FL 32459
(850) 267-2185
Monday-Saturday 5pm-until
